Admission
by Cherry Delight
Summary: The time has come to leave Domino High, and Jou reveals his true feelings for Kaiba. But can Kaiba let Jou in? Can Jou force Kaiba to figure out what he really wants? Why is the sky blue? Read and find out! COMPLETE.
1. Default Chapter

_This'll have to do for the entire fic : **I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!** But I do own this story. I hopes yalls enjoy it._

**To admit :**

_**1. To permit to enter**_

_**2. To make acknowledgment**_

_**or**_

_**2. To afford possibility**_

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**Chapter 1**

It was the middle of Tuesday's lunch period at Domino High, and Kaiba and Yugi and his friends were in the classroom alone, as usual. Kaiba had long since eaten his own small lunch. The annoying ones, however, were all still shovelling food into their mouths and talking loudly, bursts of laughter interrupting his concentration.

It had been like this all of last week too, and Kaiba had concluded that their animated conversation was due more to nostalgia than anything else. It was, after all, the last week they would ever be attending Domino High, which was bound to inspire reminiscence. Well, at least in the sentimental kind. Kaiba couldn't care less. He didn't like that he'd have to establish a new schedule, but that was hardly admitting he'd miss the place. It was clear that the others would, though. After a particularly raucous outburst from the back of the classroom, Kaiba hastily packed up his laptop, knowing that he'd never get any work done if he stayed.

He navigated the maze of desks, passing by the cheerful group as he neared the door.

"Join us, Kaiba!" called out Yugi.

"Yeah, come on, Kaiba!" echoed Anzu.

Jou mumbled something to Honda through a mouthful of food, and they both snickered.

Suddenly, Kaiba wanted nothing more than to be far away from them, from their friendship and food, their snickers and smiles.

"I've got work to do," he shot none too kindly over his shoulder as he strode out of the classroom quickly. He kept walking, his steady footsteps echoing loudly in the mostly empty corridor. He suddenly had the urge to lose himself in his work, and forget all about school and Yugi and his laughing friends, and snickering dogs especially. He was so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn't realise there were other footsteps now, and that they were following him; and he didn't hear the voice calling out for to him to stop. He turned into an empty classroom and headed toward one of the desks in the front row.

Kaiba snapped back to reality when he felt a hand grip tightly around his arm. He spun around, quickly knocking it away with the briefcase he had firmly clasped in his own free hand.

"Shit!"

The owner of the offending arm hopped about a little, alternately cradling and slightly shaking out said arm.

"What do you want, mutt?" Kaiba asked impatiently. He was supposed to be forgetting all about him and everything else; and his briefcase felt heavy with all the work he had yet to do. He took a good look at the blond who was still rubbing his arm, his face screwed up.

"Jeez, I come out here to talk to you and you smack me around? What the hell is that thing made of? Lead?"

Kaiba stared at Jou, waiting for him to make a point.

"I mean, what if I was someone else? You woulda clocked Yugi in the head if it was him." Jou smiled a little, but quickly stopped when he saw Kaiba's humourless face.

"I haven't insulted you all day and you come here looking for a fight? You're dumber than I give you credit for," Kaiba smirked, setting down his briefcase on the nearest desk.

"I'm not dumb, and I'm not looking for a fight," Jou responded quickly, but without his usual fire. "Just wanted to talk a little." He turned back to the door, pulling it almost closed.

Kaiba blinked, sure that he'd heard wrong. "Talk? About what? We've got nothing to talk about."

Facing Kaiba again, Jou opened his mouth and then shut it again quickly. He looked very much like he was about to say something he didn't want to, but then his expression changed, some unknown emotion taking over his features.

"About Yugi," Jou said.

"Yugi?" Kaiba questioned. He raised an eyebrow and folded his arms. "You ran out here, following me like a puppy looking for food to talk about **Yugi**?"

Jou frowned at what had to be the millionth dog remark Kaiba had ever made, but nodded.

"Well, what about Yugi? Good old World Champion, King of Games," Kaiba paused, tasting the words on his tongue. They were acidic. "What the hell does he want?"

"Gods, you can cut the sour grapes shit. That's getting old, Kaiba. And he doesn't want anything from you. Except your friendship," Jou said. He moved to lean against the nearby teacher's desk.

"My friendship?" The blond nodded. Kaiba scoffed at that, a mirthless chuckle spilling out of his lips. "Well, I don't want his. I don't want it, and I don't need it. You can go back to your little friends now."

Kaiba turned away from Jou to slip into the desk his briefcase was resting on, but he again found his arm in Jou's hand. Kaiba stilled, and then turned around to face Jou slowly. He yanked his arm from Jou's grasp, wondering if he should pound the dog into a pulp now or later. He had quickly moved past annoyed into angry.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? Touch me again and you'll regret it." Jou met Kaiba's even tone with an equally even glare.

"Then at least hear me out. Just now, in class, Yugi asked you to eat with us. And you just walked out on him. Like he doesn't even matter, like he's nothing. He's done a lot of shit for you in the past, would it hurt you to be nicer to the guy? He keeps reaching out, hoping you'll take his hand one day, but you keep slapping it away. I dunno why he keeps trying, gods know I wouldn't, but the least you can do is give him your hand too. At least once." Jou's intense stare faltered, and he stopped talking.

"Are you done?" Kaiba enquired dryly.

Jou rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I guess."

"Good. Look, mutt, I don't know where all this came from, but I know where you can shove it. This is the last week we'll ever have to see each other, there's no need for this friendship thing now. Come Friday, we'll all be nothing but bitter memories. The little midget has enough friends anyway. He doesn't need me, just like I don't need him."

"You can never have enough friends. And that's my point. We're most likely never gonna see each other again, why not take the chance? If not now, when?"

"How about never? Is never good enough for you?" Kaiba almost laughed at the mix of disbelief and anger on Jou's face. Jou shook his head and snorted mirthlessly, drawing himself up to look Kaiba in the eye, despite the inch or two the dark haired boy had over him. They were so close Kaiba could feel the other boy's breath against his cheek. Jou was suddenly very serious, and he spoke softly and steadily.

"If you can't even be nice to Yugi, there's no hope for the rest of us, is there?" Soft brown eyes bored into Kaiba's icy blue depths, and he was now very confused.

"You didn't come here to talk about Yugi," Kaiba said slowly, in realisation. He trained his calculating eyes on Jou. "What were you going to say before?"

Jou smiled sadly. "Nothing. Nothing at all. Enjoy your life, Kaiba." He turned around to walk to the door, but this time he was stopped by Kaiba's hand on his arm. Jou turned around to face him, but made no move to pull away. Kaiba's grip had them standing closer then ever, and to his bewilderment, Kaiba was in no hurry to pull away either.

"Touch me again and you'll regret it," Jou intoned softly, but entirely without malice.

Something in Kaiba's head told him that he should let Jou go, that he should step back, and that he should let the blond leave. He did let go, and he did step back, but he couldn't let him leave, not yet. Whatever change had come over the other boy was affecting him too somehow, and he wouldn't let Jou leave until he got to the bottom of whatever was going on.

"What were you going to say before?" Kaiba asked again, now desperately curious, but hiding it well. Was it something important? Was it something he needed to know? He had an inexplicable feeling that it was both, but he couldn't for the life of him figure out what the mutt would have to say to him that could be so urgent.

Jou didn't answer, and he repeated his question, noticing that Jou was now beginning to look like a trapped animal, all shifty eyes and nervous movements.

"I wanted to know if you were going to Otogi's party this Saturday. I know you got an invitation. We'll all be there…last hurrah kind of thing." Jou couldn't meet Kaiba's eyes as he said this.

This quiet and edgy Jou was new to Kaiba, and now he positively knew that the mutt was lying. The same voice that had told him to back away earlier was now telling him to give it up, that if Jou wanted to keep it a secret then so be it. It told him that he didn't really care, and that whatever it was would probably irritate him anyway. But he hushed the voice, an irrational need to hear whatever Jou was trying to keep from him building up inside. Or maybe it was an irrational need to beat Jou at every game, physical or mental. He'd never lost before, and he wouldn't now.

This irrationality, however, annoyed him, and, mad at himself and at Jou, he snarled, "Bull**shit**. What the fuck were you going to say?"

"You don't wanna know!" said Jou, just as heatedly.

"Like hell I don't. I've been asking for the past few minutes, and I'm getting impatient. You either tell me now, or you'll tell me later, in a great deal of pain." Kaiba moved closer to Jou, who kept backing up. He soon hit the teacher's desk, with nowhere else to go. "I don't know how much longer we can pretend to be civil to each other, puppy. We've gone ages without a fight, and I think we're due. So, just tell me. I'll try not to bite." He tried his utmost to be menacing, smiling his best villainous smile down at Jou, who was slumped against the teacher's desk, wide eyes on Kaiba's.

"I'm trying to save you trouble, here, Kaiba. You'll regret asking, and I'll regret telling you anything. I'm warning you…Let's just drop it. I gotta get back to the others." He sounded tired, like he was about to drop a heavy burden at any minute.

Kaiba knew the sound of defeat well, and he heard it ringing clear in Jou's voice. Let it never be said that he didn't have people skills, he smirked inwardly. One more push, and he'd win, yet again. Jou had gotten to his feet and made to sidle past Kaiba. The dark haired boy, however, had different ideas, and his hand flew out to smack into the middle of Jou's chest, holding him back. He felt Jou's muscles tense under his hand; he was ready to snap.

"Fine!" Jou ground out angrily. "You wanna know? Fucking find out, then!"

Kaiba barely had time for a celebratory smirk before Jou had lunged toward him, their lips colliding. And then, either Kaiba had gasped in shock, or Jou had fought his way in, but now he could feel the blond in his mouth, prodding and teasing his own stilled tongue. He felt Jou's hand quickly moving to the back of his head, pulling them closer. He felt his hand, still on Jou's chest, trapped between them. He felt both their hearts beat, strong and erratic. He heard the blood rushing in his ears, felt it racing through him. Maybe he was getting light-headed, and that was why he leaned into Jou a little. Eyes still wide open, he saw Jou's eyes closed, his brow furrowed. He couldn't form a single thought, save for these physical things.

Then in a split second he came to, realising just what was going on, and roughly pushed Jou off of him. The teacher's desk scraped backwards with Jou's weight.

"What the fuck was that?" he sputtered, his trademark cold calm evaporated by the heat of confusion and outrage.

"That was a kiss, Kaiba. Now we both regret it, and now I can leave." He sounded exasperated, as if Kaiba was a child who wouldn't stop asking for a cookie, and then dropped it as soon as they got one. He made to brush by Kaiba, but stopped.

"I – I don't suppose that meant anything to you. I mean, you didn't – didn't **feel** anything, right?" Jou looked at him searchingly, hope clearly shining in his face.

This was a terribly awkward situation, Kaiba thought to himself. One he was wholly unfamiliar with. He looked at Jou, who was silently begging him to say yes, and he was not entirely sure that he could say no. He'd never really had the feelings he'd had just now before from just a kiss; the feeling that his brain was swimming, and that his gut was twisting, nothing else on his mind but the other's lips and tongue and hands and an insane fluttering deep inside. Were those the feelings Jou was talking about? He took a breath through parted lips, now ten times more confused than he was a few minutes ago.

And just what the hell was that kiss anyway? Did that mean that the little street punk had other feelings for him besides complete hatred? Did Jou really **like** him? Or was he playing with him? That was a funny kind of game, if the latter was true. But Kaiba had a feeling that it wasn't a game at all; that that kiss was the most serious thing the blond had ever done. That blond was looking at him now, with an intensity that rivalled the glares they'd trade when they fought. When they fought…Well, were they ever really fights, then? What were they?

And hadn't he thought about it too, what Jou had just done, what it would be like? No, this was ridiculous. He'd never have done it. Did that make Jou brave, or foolish? Why did he do it? Why?

Kaiba blinked rapidly, trying to clear his mind. He was thinking too much, and he was sure he wasn't thinking the right things. He wasn't doing the right things either. Right now, he should be shouting at the dumb dog, how dare he touch me - how dare he **kiss** me? Who the hell does he think he is? Who the hell does he think **I** am?

Collecting himself, he opened his mouth resolutely, to tell the mutt off, but he couldn't say the words. Jou was clearly more than a little baffled at his inability to respond.

"Kaiba, look, forget it. It was just a kiss, I – I –" His words trailed off, and he looked concernedly at Kaiba. "Say something."

Kaiba looked back at him, not sure how much of his confusion his face was betraying. Then he let the indignation and fury well up inside him, and released them, in way he hadn't done in a long time. The sudden uncertainty and anger, and the frustration and chaos raging inside him all spilled out.

"You want me to say something? Fuck you! What the fuck are you playing at? On the one hand, if that joke of a kiss was meant to be serious, you're more pathetic than I thought. What did you think one kiss could change? What were you hoping for? That I'd put my arms around you and take you home with me? That I'd tell you I love you, and we'd be together forever? On the other hand you're up to something – which I'm much more inclined to believe. Are you trying to humiliate me, to trick me? Or is it something else? Do you want my money, Jounouchi? Do you want to be rich?" He paused for a breath. He knew he was red in the face, but he wasn't done. "Why would you do that? Why?"

"Are you freaking paranoid? I don't want your damned money, I don't want anything!" Jou looked nervously at the open door, trying to keep his voice down, but failing.

"Don't want anything? Just my friendship, right?" Kaiba scoffed. "Please. You'll have to do a little better than that."

"I'd settle for friendship. But I want more than that. I – I wanna be with you…I can't explain it. Don't ask me to. Just – I swear, I just wanna be with you." Jou's face was painfully honest, but Kaiba couldn't help it.

"So, you want to be with me, but you can't explain, and I can't ask questions, and I'm supposed to trust that you're not after my money or playing some vindictive little trick on me?" Kaiba's accusing voice was biting.

"Trick? I'm not tricking – look! I'm not tricking anyone! This was a fucking mistake. I was being honest. I wish for once you could cut the shit and be honest with yourself too." Jou stopped and gave Kaiba the kind of searching look that he was accustomed to giving others. "You haven't said no yet," Jou said plainly.

"What?"

"Did you feel anything?"

"Doesn't matter. Whatever you're looking for, you won't find it here." Kaiba's words were cold, and he knew they cut Jou deep.

"You didn't say no."

"Fuck off. How's that?"

"You still haven't said no. I know you felt something. You won't even give me a chance?" His voice trembled with unsung emotion. And there it was again. That hope, showing through in Jou's face.

"A chance for what? You kissed me once, and you're lucky I haven't torn you limb from limb!" He was feeling more like himself with each passing moment, his coolness returning to him, and he twisted his face into a mask of contempt. He felt malicious, wanting to stomp Jou into the ground and make him suffer for making him lose his cool, his famous self-control.

"I can't believe you thought – whatever sad little thoughts you were having. That kiss **was** a mistake. I'd never be with a lousy, second-rate, dumb mutt like you - **never**. You got that? We've got no chance. We never did, we never will. Do you understand me now?"

He was smug, and feeling very superior. He waited, fully expecting to see Jou's face crumple, but it never did. Instead, he saw a sort of righteous fire burning in Jou's eyes, and try as he might, he couldn't look away.

"No, it wasn't a mistake. At least now I don't have any misconceptions about anything. I thought if I was honest with you, if I bared my soul, then maybe you could do the same. It took a lot for me to come here, to let you know. I had to swallow my pride and all that, and I hoped that if I backed down first, you'd give me a chance." He shook his head slightly.

"I thought there was something inside you, under all that ice and –" he seemed to flounder for the right word. "- and arrogance. Something good. But I was wrong. You've got nothing inside but more ice and a black heart. You couldn't even let me down easy." Jou shook his head slightly again, a bitter smile twisting his lips. The bell rang, and he looked at the open door.

"You know what the best thing is, though?" he continued, turning back to Kaiba. "That you want me. You just don't wanna believe it. I've seen the way you look at me sometimes, when you think no one else is looking. Hell, maybe you don't even know you're doing it. But I know. Don't worry, though, you'll realise it soon enough. Then it'll eat you alive how much you want me, and then **you'll** have to swallow **your** pride." Jou leaned in close to Kaiba, who stared him down all the way. "Goodbye Kaiba. Have a nice life."

And with that, Jou strode out of the classroom, hands in his pockets. He kicked the door open, leaving Kaiba staring after him, a bundle of emotions so tight inside him that he couldn't separate one from the other. He was tempted to shout something rude after the boy just to make sure he understood that he was so far beneath him that the mere thought of them together was a joke, but he was honestly a little tongue tied. He didn't really know what to make of Jou's last words, far less the last few minutes.

He picked up his briefcase from the desk behind him and made his way to the front gates of Domino High. He called his driver, and in five minutes he was on his way to KaibaCorp. School be damned. He really did have work to do.

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_Yall know what to do! Review me, please!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Despite Kaiba's intense need for productivity, however, he spent the afternoon running his lunchtime encounter over and over in his head, all work forgotten. Why did he lose control like that? Why didn't it come to blows, like it usually did? Kaiba knew that he was just itching to rearrange the blond's face for touching him like that – what the hell stopped him? And just what the hell was Jou talking about? He didn't know anything about Kaiba, far less what or who he wanted. It definitely wasn't Jou. Was it?

He stayed at the office for as long as possible and, Mokuba was already in bed by the time he got home. He wondered when it was exactly that Mokuba stopped waiting for him on the living room couch, but ended up thinking about the kiss again. And Jou. He really didn't want him – did he?

He was soon very sorry that he searched for the answer to that last question so fervently, because they came to him in his dreams that night. Grasping hands and seeking lips pervaded his dreams, shocks of blond hair flashing in his eyes. He'd needed a good long cold shower before he could leave the house that morning. He still tried to tell himself that it was his subconscious playing tricks on him, that dreams were just that, but these reproofs were half-hearted at best.

His mind had never been in such a mess, and he was having a hard time sifting through everything that was now whizzing around in there. He wasn't used to indecision and confusion, and they were definitely taking their toll on him. Although he tried to hide his inner turmoil, Mokuba noticed that something was wrong with him, and asked Kaiba if he was sick while they were on their way to school. He assured his little brother that he was fine, while thinking that he was going crazy. So much emotion – it was driving him mad.

Of course, once he got to Domino High, he'd been confronted about ditching school the day before by his homeroom teacher. But after one icy glare from him, she quickly dropped it and moved onto someone else. He'd treated everyone like that that morning, acting more unfriendly and imposing than usual. Crowds parted for him, and everyone avoided him (even the cheery Yugi), sensing his horrid mood as if it were a mist of cold air rolling off of him. He was satisfied that others still knew that he was not to be trifled with, even if that dog had clearly forgotten his place.

Speaking of the mutt, he'd come to class late, looking very dishevelled. His uniform was wrinkled, and his hair was more of a yellow mess than usual. Red faced, and puffing like he'd run all the way to class, he slid into his seat and winked at his friends.

Kaiba resolved not to look at him, to pretend as if he had already forgotten yesterday and the bastard's very presence, but he couldn't stop himself. He turned his head to the side, and looked out of the corner of his eyes to see Jou, sitting two seats behind him to the right. Jou had been waiting for him to look, his brown eyes already trained on Kaiba's. They stared at each other for a moment, Kaiba's face as blank as he could manage, Jou's with a slight smirking smile, as if he knew something Kaiba didn't. It was more than a little annoying.

Then Kaiba broke the gaze, turning back to the teacher. He didn't even know what class it was, not that it mattered much; heavy teaching had been officially over for weeks already. Well, that and he was a certified genius and hardly needed to **ever** come to class. He could have stayed home today. Why didn't he stay home? For the next few periods he concentrated on not thinking about Jou or his dreams, and then it was recess. They had a free period afterward, and he decided hastily to leave. He was going to go to KaibaCorp and sit in his big office and do some important work.

When he was almost to the door, he felt a hand on his chest. He looked sideways to find Jou there, an inviting smile on his face. "Where are you going? I thought we were due for a fight," he said, licking a canine with the tip of his tongue.

Kaiba looked at the tip of pink behind Jou's lips, the same lips and tongue that had been on his own just yesterday. He wondered what the blond was on about now. Couldn't he leave well enough alone? He saw the steely flash in Jou's eyes. Ah, he knew what this was about. This was about revenge; Jou wanted to get back at him for the rejection he faced yesterday. Behind Jou, he could see his friends, the ever present Yugi & Co, hovering warily.

"How about you save yourself some more humiliation? End your stay at Domino High with just a little dignity? Hm?" Kaiba spoke softly, so that no one but Jou could hear.

Jou leaned in a bit, hand still on Kaiba's chest, almost a little conspiratorially. He spoke softly, too. "Are you sure I was the one humiliated yesterday? You seemed pretty upset yourself. I mean, what if anyone ever found out that you were lusting after a – what was it you said? - a lousy, second-rate, dumb mutt?" Jou didn't look particularly upset when he said the last part, but he did stare Kaiba down, waiting for a response.

Kaiba grit his teeth, angry at himself for not seeing this sooner. He had to admit, though, he didn't think that Jou was the type to sink to blackmail or anything so drastic. But this was easily fixed. The easier, the better. Gozaburo had always taught him not to negotiate with terrorists or bargain with enemies, but this was one incident Kaiba waned to put behind him for good, no matter the cost.

"The way I remember it," he said just as quietly, "it was you lusting after me. And no one's going to find anything out. I didn't think you were the type, but I guess it just goes to show that everyone has their price. What's yours?"

"Price? What are you –" Realisation hit Jou. "Goddamnit, Kaiba! I said I didn't want your fucking money!" he hissed.

Kaiba saw the numerous people that had remained in class, including the King of Games and his clique, casting suspicious glances their way. He suddenly thought that they must look like they were having a lover's quarrel, the way they were so close to each other and whispering angrily.

"Then what the fuck do you want?" he hissed back. He needed to get out of there as quickly as possible.

"I already told you," he said. Then Jou pushed him hard in the chest. "Fuck you, Kaiba!" he shouted.

That got everyone's attention. All eyes swivelled their way as Kaiba caught his balance, stunned by Jou's outburst. He really **did** want to fight. And bastard had pushed him. Well, who was he to decline such a heartfelt invitation?

"You just can't leave well enough alone, now can you? You know what they say about the cat? Well, I think **stupidity** killed the dog," Kaiba said loudly.

Jou laughed. "That's the best you got for me, Kaiba? You're not going soft on me, are you? Jeez, someone'd think you liked me or something, that was so weak!" He smiled knowingly, mockingly. "You don't like me, do you, Kaiba? Are you gonna miss me?"

"Poor desperate mutt, looking for love in all the wrong places, are we? I bet there's no one willing to sink so low as you –"

"'Cause I'm a second-rate dog, right?!" There it was, that fire. Seto could see it building up in Jou.

"You forgot lousy," Kaiba reminded him casually.

That did it. Jou was flying toward him, and they let their fists do all the talking. The blows rained, and Kaiba knew they were giving a good show, because the students were gravitating toward them, surrounding them. He though he heard the bell signalling the end of recess ring; but then again, maybe he heard ringing because Jou had boxed him in the ear. He noticed no one tried to separate them, though, not even Jou's buddies. After receiving a good cuff in the vicinity of his left eye, Kaiba elbowed Jou in the face, and before he could right himself, Jou lunged at him, taking them both to the floor.

Kaiba cracked his head on the ground, seeing stars for a minute. And then Jou was on top of him, holding his arms above his head. Kaiba struggled, trying wildly to wrench his arms from Jou's grip, but it was impossible; it was like his arms were clamped in iron. He quickly changed his tactics. He tried to flip them over, pushing up and sideways against Jou's hips. It worked, and he was suddenly looking down into Jou's chocolate coloured eyes, their faces very close, their chests heaving against one another.

"Figured you'd like it on top," the blond breathed. The air rushing from his lungs stirred the hair in Kaiba's eyes, and Kaiba decided that he'd had enough. He made to get off of the boy beneath him, but Jou still had his arms pinioned, quite painfully now.

Sensing Kaiba's movements, Jou quickly wrapped his legs around his waist, pinning Kaiba on top of him. He tightened his legs, pulling their hips together, and Kaiba gasped. He hoped that their audience would think that it was because Jou was trying to squeeze the air out of him. They didn't need to know that it was because Jou was rubbing against him in an excruciatingly pleasurable way. Jou continued to move beneath Kaiba, giving the illusion of struggle, but really arching up into the boy above him.

"Do you want me yet?" he asked breathlessly. "Never mind, I can feel that you do. I told you, Kaiba. It was only a matter of time."

And it was true. Kaiba was trying his best not to react to Jou, but his body betrayed him. Jou suddenly let go of Kaiba's arms and slackened his legs, giving Kaiba leave to push off of him and scramble backwards a little. Jou sat up, gulping in air as if a chokehold on him had just been released. He stared at Kaiba through his straw-coloured bangs, and Kaiba looked away. The dark haired boy got to his feet shakily and shoved his way through the crowd, not waiting for them to part for him. He grabbed up his briefcase that had been kicked away in all the chaos, and immediately left, calling his driver as he walked down the halls.

He went straight home, rushing through the front door and up the stairs, barely stopping to disrobe before he hit the shower. First freezing cold water, and then scalding hot. He stood under the hot spray, turning his face into it and running his hands through his sopping hair. If only the water could burn away the last two days, or the last hour, or what he had done in the shower mere moments before at the memory of the way Jou had pressed into him.

But it couldn't. These things couldn't be burned away, because they'd already been burned into him, deep inside him. The best he could do was take his mind off of these things for a moment, focus on something else. Then he had an idea. He'd get Mokuba from school, and they'd spend the day together, the way they used to when they were younger. They'd go to the zoo, or the movies – whatever Mokuba wanted. He breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that his brother would help him take his mind off the bizarre feelings he was having for the yellow-haired, brown-eyed bastard he'd, until recently, completely detested. Not that these new feelings were any different. Not really.

He turned off the water and stepped out of the shower, heartened for the moment. As he was drying his hair, however, he felt a stinging pain at his temple. He winced, and moved to the mirror, turning his head slightly to see what the problem was. And there was a blooming bruise, on his left temple, still red and tender. And there across his forearms, long red strokes, from Jou's fingers, already tinged with blue.

"Shit," he muttered. He looked at his bruises in the mirror. He suddenly had the absurd though that that Jou had marked him, claimed him somehow. He hung his head. Maybe Jou really was serious about him, about wanting to be with him, he thought out of nowhere. And Kaiba couldn't understand it at all. He looked back at the mirror; and realised that he could never push Jou to the back of his mind as long as those marks were still there. He sighed. He couldn't go out like that either. Oh well, he and Mokuba would just spend the rest of the day indoors. That was better than nothing.

And that's just what they did. Despite being a bit surprised at the fact that his big brother wasn't at Domino High, or at work, and had pulled him out of school without a legitimate emergency underway, Mokuba was very excited about spending time with Kaiba. And although Mokuba asked all too often about the bruises on his big brother's face and arms, they had a good time.

He and Mokuba played games, watched TV, and did all sorts of brotherly things that afternoon. Then they made dinner together, something they hadn't done in a very long time. Kaiba pretended that they were both years younger, when they still slept in the same room and spent as much time together as possible. When Mokuba still needed him desperately, and that was all he cared about. Not like now, where he had so many more concerns in his head – his company, his rivals, his games, and, the most recent addition, Jou.

Kaiba remembered when he could have a knock-down, drag-out fight with the boy, and then come home and forget all about it. The bruises meant nothing, they faded in time. His words never haunted him. He never dreamt about him. And then it had all changed in an instant, the second their lips touched. Or maybe things didn't change; maybe he just recognised them for what they were, and had been all along. Maybe the mutt was right; maybe he'd always felt this way and just didn't want to believe it.

But what was 'this way'? He didn't want to think bout it; when he thought about that too hard, his head started to ache. He instead decided to focus his energies on acting normal around Mokuba.

That night, the dreams returned, and they were as enjoyable as they were repulsive. He started awake in the middle of the night, fully conscious, a brilliant idea forming. He wouldn't go to school the next day. He wouldn't be missing anything important, and he'd have some peace of mind if he didn't have to see the mutt, hopefully. Satisfied with his temporary fix, he tossed and turned, trying to get to sleep again, only drifting of mere hours before sunrise.

So he stayed home. He got up after the sun had risen, something he hadn't done in years. After seeing Mokuba off, he resisted the urge to roam the mansion like a spectre, or succumb to tortuous thoughts. He really should have gone to KaibaCorp, but given how much work he'd done yesterday, he really didn't see much point in it. Instead, he chose to play a couple prototype KaibaCorp games he had brought home a few days ago. He had given them over to Mokuba to play and search for bugs, but he decided that he needed the distraction more. He got surprisingly caught up in the games, and before he knew it, Mokuba was home, and he hadn't had a single thought about Jou.

They went out to eat, despite the hideous state of his face, and had a lovely evening. Kaiba got happier and happier – well, as happy as he could possibly get - as the evening wore on. He and Mokuba went to KaibaLand after the restaurant, where Mokuba played everything in sight until it was way past his bedtime. He fell asleep on the way home, and as Kaiba watched him sleep, he renewed his resolve to regain control of his mind. He had to take care of his brother. He couldn't fall apart, especially because of something so little as a kiss.

And a few wet dreams, he reminded himself, but he chose to ignore that.

He breathed deep, as the streets whizzed past him, satisfied that he had put an end to all the nonsense of the past few days. Tomorrow would be his last day at Domino High, and the last day he'd ever see Jounouchi Katsuya. That brought him solace, and after putting Mokuba down, he went to bed himself, sure that his dreams would remain unmolested. But they weren't, and he woke up feeling more troubled than ever.

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	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Kaiba drove himself to school on Friday morning, in case he had to beat a hasty retreat like Tuesday and Wednesday. He also deliberately arrived fifteen minutes late, instead of half an hour early as usual, so that he could spend as little time in class as possible. He parked his shiny new sports car in the front parking lot, screeching to a halt in the space reserved for the Vice Principal, which was oddly empty. He wondered if the administration would dare ask him to move it.

Kaiba walked to the steps leading to the front doors. He froze with his foot on the first step when he heard someone call out, "You're late!"

He looked up, and saw Jou sauntering down the stairs to meet him. He stopped on the last step, close to Kaiba's foot. "And you drive like a maniac."

All sorts of expletives ran through Kaiba's head as he looked up at Jou. This was exactly the kind of thing he was trying to avoid! Had he been waiting there for him? What did he want now? He did note, however, that Jou too had his own bruises, a cut on his lip and some discoloration around the corner of his mouth. He was suddenly smug, and tried to sidestep Jou, remembering that he meant nothing to him. The blond, however, moved quickly to block him.

"Shouldn't you be in class, or something?" Kaiba asked nastily.

"Shouldn't you?" Jou retorted.

"Where do you think I'm trying to go?"

"Missed you yesterday." His voice was casual enough, but the slight curl in Jou's lips betrayed him.

"Did you now?" Kaiba enquired dryly.

"Yeah. It's always fun to torture the one you love." Kaiba noticed that Jou was licking his canine again. He realised, not for the first time, that he had no idea why Jou was doing this. Sure, he'd been rejected, and none too kindly at that. But still, this aggression was confusing, and, Kaiba thought, way beyond normal behaviour.

"Why don't we just settle this now? So you got rejected. Big deal. Get over it, mutt. What are you trying to do?" He pointed to his temple. "Beat me into loving you? From what I hear, that's not the way these things work. So why don't you just back off gracefully, save a little face?"

"I actually just like hitting you. And it's not about saving face either, as pretty as I might be." He smiled ruefully as he fingered the dark bruise around his mouth.

"What is it about then? Because I'll have you know, I think you might be insane."

Jou ignored the remark about his mental health. "It's about you," he said simply. "You never said you didn't feel anything when I kissed you, and I won't take 'Fuck off' for an answer. I know you want me; I felt it, on the floor. You did too. That's why you took off like I had the plague, or something. What's it gonna take for you to admit it to yourself?" Jou looked beseechingly at Kaiba.

"Jounouchi, you really need to get over this." The use of his given name roused Jou a little. Kaiba barely realised he'd called the other boy something besides mutt or puppy or loser dog. "School's over; this little daydream you've been living should be ending too." Kaiba looked condescendingly at Jou. He was suddenly feeling generous. He wouldn't start another fight, not now. He spoke slowly, and patronisingly. "Now look, I'm being gentle, just like you wanted. Get someone else to fantasise about, okay?"

"Are you sure that's what you want?" Jou challenged. His voice was low, and dark.

"Anything that makes you happy," Kaiba replied sarcastically. He looked behind Jou at the front doors, and then at his watch, a silent signal to the blond to move things along. He impressed himself, projecting such a calm exterior; he'd really gotten good at it over the years, he mused. On the inside, however, he was eager to escape the blond's presence, longing to retreat to the safety of a class full of people who never talked to him.

"Yeah right. You don't wanna see me with anyone else as much as I don't wanna see you with anyone else." Jou seemed confident in that statement. Kaiba snickered.

"I really couldn't care less, puppy. Fuck who you want, when you want, wherever you want - it's none of my business. Are we done yet?" He was now more impatient than he'd ever been to get to class. Maybe he'd have to use violence after all. Jou stood silent for a minute, seemingly deep in thought.

"I – I guess we are," he said abruptly. "And maybe you're right. But one thing's for sure - you'll regret you ever said that tomorrow." Kaiba took a good look at Jou as he said this. He didn't look defeated, or any other variation of sad at all. He looked like he was just getting the upper hand in a monumental game, the kind of game where the risks were sometimes greater than the reward. Kaiba didn't understand Jou's expression at all. So he rolled his eyes, and exuded an air of indifference.

"Tomorrow? What's so different about tomorrow?"

"You're coming to Otogi's party, right?" The question seemed innocent enough, but it was totally out of context.

"Of course not," Kaiba sneered.

"You should. You might see something that'll give you an epiphany; clear a few things up for you." Jou looked at Kaiba, face blank, but serious. Kaiba realised that Jou wanted him to come to the orgy of drunkards and stoners that he called a party, but he had no idea why. For all he knew, he had just shot Jou down, but here he was looking like still had a chance.

"No. I can destroy brain cells by myself at home if I really wanted to. No need to have others do it for me." He made to sweep past Jou and up the stairs, but stopped when Jou grabbed his arm as he passed. Jou leaned in close, his lips almost touching Kaiba's cheek, his hot breath swirling in the whorls of the taller boy's ear.

"Trust me," he whispered throatily. The sultry tone hit Kaiba like an ocean wave, and his heart trip-hammered in his chest with the power of it. "You'll be missing a hell of a party."

With that, Jou released Kaiba and stalked off toward the front gates, hands deep in his pockets, heading out of school. Breathing deeply, he decided to add what just happened to an ever-growing list of things he planned to forget. He pushed the whole morning encounter deep inside as he made his way to class, ignoring the stares of students and the teacher as he strode to his seat with the haughtiness fitting of the CEO of KaibaCorp.

Since it was the last day of school for them, they had a half day, and were all out by lunch. As he walked to his car, the endless amounts of people milling about him were detailing their plans for the evening, the weekend, and the rest of the vacation. He heard a couple of people specifically mention Otogi's party. He scoffed at the idea as he slid into the driver's seat - Otogi's party indeed. There was no way he'd ever indulge in such a low class form of entertainment, although he was sure it wouldn't be low class at all. Whatever Otogi Ryuuji was, he wasn't low class. He'd pull out all the stops and have the biggest, most extravagant bash he could; it wasn't like he couldn't afford it.

Sometimes Kaiba found himself almost outraged about just how much money Otogi probably spent on parties. He knew the value of money, the value of hard work. He also knew that most of the wealthy had worked hard and sacrificed to get to where they were. Gozaburo had; he had. It was almost an affront to him that Otogi frivolously frittered away all that money on useless extravaganzas.

Kaiba revved his engine and checked his rear-view mirror, making sure no one was in his way. He saw people jumping from behind his car, and he almost laughed at how comical they looked - like cats shooting hysterically into the air in surprise. He reversed out of the parking spot sharply, paused briefly to put the car in gear, and then took off like a shot out of the front gate. The sea of students had parted for him, and he was sure he'd left behind a trail of smoke. He couldn't leave the place fast enough.

He peeled through the streets of Domino, careening around corners and running red lights, driving as if he owned the very asphalt the streets were made of. What was the use in owning a sports car if he never really used it, he reasoned. He drove faster and faster until the world was as blurry as his mind, and then he slowed down, remembering that not being able to see the road was a bad thing. He made it to the mansion in record time, not to mention narrowly avoided at least four accidents; but now he was over the speed rush and needed something else to occupy his time.

Mokuba had a half day too, but Kaiba knew that he had plans with friends from school – a pizza party and then a sleepover. Kaiba knew he couldn't go to the office; he wouldn't get anything done in such a distracted state. So, he decided to stay home and continue his analysis of the prototype games he had played the day before. Halfway through the games, however, he abandoned his attempts at industry and simply enjoyed them as a gamer. He was pleasantly surprised to find that he could still lose himself in a game without violently obsessing over codes and resolution and everything else he ordered daily reports on. He still **noticed**, but he didn't obsess.

After he had finally beaten all of the games, he searched for something else to do. Work? Puzzles? Television? Books? None of them would hold his attention. He'd never been this restless before; he'd learned long ago the advantages of being quiet and still. Night fell, and, settled in a couch in the living room, he allowed himself to think the thoughts he'd been avoiding since that morning.

He'd thought he was done with Jou, but honestly, the boy's cryptic last words circled in his mind. Epiphany? Who knew the mutt even knew the word, far less what it meant? And what about the way he said it, in that voice that made Kaiba's blood rush ten times faster and made his breath quicken? It was all food for thought, but Kaiba was sure he'd eaten enough. He was full, and couldn't take another bite.

He still wondered just what Jou had meant, though. It was too bad he'd never find out. He wasn't going to Otogi's party, so he'd never have this epiphany Jou assured him was waiting for him. He wasn't going, not only because parties were horrible pastimes, but also because when he really thought about it, he didn't want to know what Jou was alluding to. Not at all. Not really. All he wanted was to put the past few days behind him, and he was ready to bury everything. Almost.

He got up and made his was to the foyer. There, on the marble table in the middle of the space, was where they kept mail and other miscellaneous junk acquired during the day. It was Mokuba's responsibility to clean it, and since the little boy still sometimes forgot to tie his own shoes, Kaiba was pretty sure his invitation would still be there, buried in all the other papers. After a little sifting and tidying – he couldn't help himself - he found it, and returned to the living room to better inspect it.

It was a professionally done invitation, a small rectangle of stiff cream-coloured paper with the words "Otogi's Champagne Bash" printed in the middle. On the back were directions to Otogi's horribly pretentious house, the date of the party and the time it started (10 pm-till), and his phone number. He saw that it was a little crumpled, probably from being viciously shoved into his coat pocket after Otogi dangled the damned thing in his face for the fifth time last week.

Otogi was famous for his themed events, and it seemed that he threw one every month, and they were all as flamboyant as he was. This one, it was rumoured, promised to surpass them all. While this stirred excitement in the very souls of others who had been invited, Kaiba couldn't care less. He had hardly given the invitation a glance before he'd flung it onto the table along with other bits and pieces of paper he had amassed during the day.

But he looked at it now, at the raised lettering and dark ink, wondering if he should go after all. Not for the advertised sin and debauchery, but to find out exactly what Jou was talking about. Kaiba was sure now that the blond had something planned for him, and he had to admit that he was a little curious about it. What did that loser think he could say or do that would make Kaiba change his mind? Absolutely nothing could, Kaiba assured himself. He really didn't want the loser dog at all. So why not go? Go, and turn him down again, and laugh at the mutt when he accepted final defeat. That would be the perfect end to his matriculation at Domino High, wouldn't it? The ultimate humiliation of the ultimate thorn in his side.

He turned the invitation over in his hands, silently evaluating the merits of this plan. Aside from his own amusement and the mutt's utter humiliation, he couldn't really produce any more good points. He'd have to go to the place, first of all. Then he'd have to hang about for an extended period of time with the inescapable, ever-present drunkards and stoners. Alcohol often reduced one's inhibitions, so there was no telling how many advances he'd have to reject. Alcohol often induced vomit also, and there was no telling how many puddles of it he'd have to dodge to remain reasonably clean. He suddenly couldn't believe he had to talk himself out of going to the Champagne Bash, and that vomit was one of the major cons.

That definitely settled it. He was definitely not going. He and Mokuba would go to dinner, and have fun. He wouldn't think about the party again, and he wouldn't think about Jou again. He felt satisfied, as if he'd finally finished a book he'd been reading for entirely too long. He was just about to get up to throw out the invitation, when the phone rang.

Dropping the piece of paper to the coffee table he had his feet propped on, he hauled himself off the couch and walked over to the phone at the back of the room. It was Mokuba, calling to say that he was fine and to say good night. Kaiba smiled as he told his brother good night, the kind of smile that he'd never let anyone else see. He didn't need anyone else. He had his brother.

Feeling suddenly sleepy, he went upstairs and crawled into bed, dreams of Jou the farthest thing from his mind.

When he woke, if he'd had any dreams, all memory of them had been evaporated by the sunlight streaming across his bed from the open windows. That was the second day that week he'd gotten up after the sun. He mentally told himself not to make a habit of that as he made his way to the bathroom.

By the time he came downstairs it was around 8am, and Mokuba was already coming through the front door. Two seconds later, he was being regaled with a detailed account of everything that had happened to Mokuba last night. Kaiba benignly listened to the little boy's chatter, until it was absolutely necessary he leave for KaibaCorp. He invited Mokuba to come along, but he declined, preferring to watch Saturday morning cartoons.

So Kaiba made his way to KaibaCorp in his chauffeured car, ready to be a productive and efficient contributor to the Japanese economy.

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	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Five hours later, Kaiba sat staring at the computer screen in front of him, having long given up on doing any real work. He sighed tiredly, and pushed away the keyboard from the edge of the desk, where he'd had his fingers poised over it, ready to pound out lines upon lines of code for his new game. The cursor blinked expectantly, almost mockingly, and Kaiba was suddenly extremely frustrated. He wanted to pick up the computer and fling it across the room, to smash it into tiny pieces.

But no. He was a rational being, and he would behave in a rational manner. He took a disk from the top drawer of his desk and saved his day's work, all nineteen lines of it. He'd take it home and finish it, and then he'd review the contracts he was supposed to go over this morning, and then he'd examine the finance information he'd requested the day before. Hopefully that wouldn't take long, and then he and Mokuba could be ready to leave by 7pm.

He stopped formulating his itinerary for a second to wonder exactly what work he **had** done that day. None. Absolutely nothing. Productive and efficient, his ass.

He had arrived a little late, to the shock of every employee he'd encountered on the way to his office. He had coffee, strong and black, as usual. His secretary brought him the day's schedule, the contracts and the finance sheets. He should have started working right then, but he just stared at his computer screen, occasionally tapping out a few lines, or shuffled the papers around his desk distractedly. When would all this end? He was sure he'd put all this rubbish behind him for good last night. There really wasn't any good reason for him to be behaving this way. Really, there wasn't.

He now called his secretary in, and gave her back most of the papers she'd brought him that morning, asking her to see that the other members of the board took care of it. Confusedly, she took them, and Kaiba could tell that she was having trouble not asking him if he was alright when he requested more games. For debugging, of course, he assured her.

He spent the entire afternoon playing games, managing to jot down some bugs while he was at it, and before he knew it, official work hours were over. He normally stayed at least an hour later on Saturdays, but he figured that since he would be working full time at KaibaCorp starting on Monday, he could leave while it was light out today. Not to mention the fact that he wouldn't get any work done anyway.

He drove home, looking forward to going out with Mokuba. He realised on Wednesday how much he missed spending time with him, and resolved to make more time for his little brother.

Since he hadn't stayed late, he got to the mansion earlier than expected. And since he hadn't brought any work with him, he decided that they had time to go to KaibaLand first and then to dinner. Mokuba was all for the idea, and they were soon there, where Mokuba aimed to play everything twice.

"Gods," Kaiba said at dinner. "You act as if you don't own KaibaLand."

Mokuba made a face and managed to stick his tongue out through a mouthful of rice.

"I don't own it. You do," he said after he's swallowed.

"**We** own it, Mokuba."

Mokuba brushed off Kaiba's amendment with a sip of juice.

"Are you going out tonight?" Mokuba asked.

Kaiba's jaws, which had been working at a piece of eel, slowed considerably, and he looked at Mokuba guardedly. Who had he been talking to?

"We are out, Mokuba," he said carefully.

"No," Mokuba rolled his eyes as if his big brother was being very silly. "I mean, after this."

"Of course not. What gave you that idea?" Kaiba asked trying to be as casual a possible without sounding forced.

"I saw the invitation on the table. I thought maybe you'd go." Shit. He'd left it on the coffee table. Kaiba could have been wrong, but he swore Mokuba sounded a little hopeful. He decided to employ evasive tactics.

"When did you become such a snoop?" he asked, in a tone as close to teasing as he could manage.

"Ha ha, I'm not a snoop. It was just lying there, so I read it. And stop trying to change the subject."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow, knowing that old tricks wouldn't work on Mokuba. He'd learned them all by now. He sighed.

"Clever little brat. No, I'm not going."

"Why not?"

"Why would I?"

"You never go out."

"That's not true. I'm out now. We went out on Thursday. I can't go out every day."

"You know what I mean. Spending time with me is different."

"I don't need anyone else."

"That's not true. We all need friends." Mokuba sounded particularly vehement about that.

"I've got you. And I'm too busy for things like that. Friends aren't going to help me run KaibaCorp."

"I outgrew that excuse about the same time as my bunny pyjamas." Mokuba's sarcastic expression, a miniature version of his own, almost made him smile.

"Those were cute," he mused dryly.

"Seto!" His sharp exclamation drew turned the heads of a few patrons at nearby tables.

"Look, Mokuba, I'm fine. And even if I wanted to do the friend thing, it wouldn't be at that party tonight."

"Friend thing? You make it sound so…so - urgh!" Mokuba threw up his hands in exasperation.

"Alright," he continued. "So, if you don't need friends, does that mean I don't either?" he challenged Kaiba.

"No, **you** need friends."

"Why? What's so different about it that I need friends but you don't?"

"Because all norm-" Kaiba stopped before he finished his sentence. He was going to say that all normal people needed friends, and he wanted Mokuba to be a normal boy, not messed up like his big brother. But there was no way he was saying that. That would lead to a whole different conversation he wasn't up to having.

"Because…because you just do," he finished lamely.

"You know that that's a dumb answer." Mokuba smiled triumphantly.

This was not going the way Kaiba wanted it to go. He hated when Mokuba got like this. It was getting harder and harder to win whatever debate they'd inevitably start. Kaiba thought it was particularly unfair because Mokuba used his puppy-eyes as a secret weapon to break him down. Mokuba knew he couldn't say no to the puppy-eyes.

"…and so you have to go!" Mokuba finished. Kaiba hadn't realised Mokuba had been talking, but he didn't like what little he'd heard.

"Go where?" he asked suspiciously.

"The party tonight!" Mokuba said cheerily.

"No, Mokuba. And that's final," Kaiba pronounced. He stabbed at a piece of eel and shoved it into his mouth for emphasis. He averted his eyes from Mokuba's disappointed face. He didn't want to lose to the puppy-eyes. Or the guilt of letting his brother down. He had too much emotion in him already, and if any more joined the throng he had a feeling he'd explode. He was struggling to keep everything in, to keep his controlled façade in place. He couldn't let puppy-eyes push him over the edge in the middle of a crowded restaurant.

"I just want you to be happy, big brother." The sadness in Mokuba's voice was almost unbearable.

And there it was. That awful guilt.

"I'll tell you what," Kaiba told Mokuba hesitantly. "I'll think about it, okay?"

Mokuba's violet eyes lit up instantly. "Okay. You'll consider it, right?"

"Sure," Kaiba managed. He figured this was a white lie. He'd **already** considered it. For too long, in his opinion.

"How about we check out the competition after dinner?" he asked to cheer Mokuba up - and assuage his own guilt.

"Cool!"

Mokuba liked to cruise the other arcades; Kaiba didn't know why. But it cheered him up alright, and in the blink of an eye, they were heading home, Mokuba asleep on the backseat. Kaiba smiled. Try as he might, the poor kid could never stay up past 9:45pm.

After he'd put Mokuba down, Kaiba retreated to his own bedroom. It was way past 10pm, and he wanted to get in at least six hours sleep before he got up at 5. He usually functioned on much less than that, but he was hoping that an (relatively) early night might put his internal clock back in sync.

But, even in sleep Mokuba wouldn't leave him alone. He found the invitation propped up on one of his pillows, staring at him. He felt the need for a shower, all of a sudden, and swiftly crossed the room to the adjoining bathroom. The shower had recently become his best friend – he wasn't thinking too clearly these days, and the shower provided a haven of privacy where he could get a hold of his wild thoughts. And whatever else needed getting a hold of. He quickly disrobed and was soon standing under the jets, palms on the wall, letting the water sluice off his face, chest and legs.

Maybe he should go. So that Mokuba wouldn't be disappointed the next day. He had seemed pretty adamant about the whole thing, and who was he to deny Mokuba anything? It was just a stupid party. He could go, spend five minutes there and then come back. He'd be making Mokuba happy at no cost to himself. He was already wide awake, and there'd hardly be anybody there – it had only just begun.

He turned around, letting the water hit the nape of his neck and his back, and he chid himself. He was pathetic, hiding behind Mokuba, using him as an excuse to go to Otogi's. If he really wanted to go, he wouldn't have to use an excuse, or talk himself into it. Then again, he reasoned, by the same logic, if he really didn't want to go, then he wouldn't have had to talk himself **out **of going.

He sighed, stretching under the hot water. He looked at his arms suspended before him, effortlessly distinguishing the bruised flesh from the rest of his pale skin. He didn't even want to think about his face. He'd always hated the fact that he could be so easily marked, that his skin was so pale and thin. But in the instant he saw his arms, that hatred rose to new heights. Big, ugly purple reminders were stamped into his very skin, and he didn't want to relive any bit of the past few days just as much as he wanted those marks gone.

Epiphanies be damned, he wasn't going anywhere. And that was final. He turned off the water, stepping out of the shower. He'd spent entirely too much time in there; he didn't want his skin to shrivel, like a horrible purple raisin.

By 11pm, he was in bed, resolve in place, the invitation flung haphazardly onto the bedside table. By 12am, he was already dressed and heading quietly out the door, keys and invitation in hand.

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	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Otogi's house wasn't very far away at all, and he made it there in a little less than fifteen minutes. At top speed. The empty streets begged him to rev the engine harder, to speed along faster. Kaiba pretended that the deafening roar blocked out any and all rational thought, and he unconcernedly zoomed along the midnight black roads, braking only to consult the directions a couple of times.

He felt the music before he heard it, and he heard the music long before he saw the house, even though it was lip up like a Christmas tree. Otogi lived in a very good neighbourhood; almost as good as the one Kaiba lived in. He pulled into someone else's driveway a few houses away from Otogi's because there was no available space in the roads that he could make out, recklessly parked cars stretching as far as the eye could see.

The music was mercilessly loud, and it was unreasonably late. Kaiba couldn't help but feel a little impressed. He was sure that if it were anyone else, this party would have been shut down a long time ago. As it was, the surrounding houses seemed to be nestled in sleep, windows dark, and silent as the grave; undisturbed by the drunken orgy taking place right next door. He shook his head as he approached Otogi's, cursing himself for ever leaving his house.

The large wooden double doors that served as the entrance of Otogi's grandiose three-storey abode were flung wide open, and Kaiba hesitated before he entered. He straightened his dark trench coat, pulled at his black shirt and tugged his low-slung belt, ready to make a dignified entrance. Just because he didn't want to be there didn't mean he shouldn't look good. He took a deep breath, and stepped into the house, calmly taking in the scene that met his eyes while ignoring the shocked glances that many hurled his way.

Whoever he'd heard it from was right – Otogi did throw sensational parties.

The decorations, Kaiba had to admit, were excellent. White and champagne-coloured streamers were suspended from the ceiling at every conceivable point. Bubbles floated around above him, seemingly from nowhere, and buckets of ice with champagne bottles firmly planted in them were strategically placed all around. And that was just the foyer. The foyer was connected to two huge rooms, the living room on the left, and a sitting room, or something like that, on the right. All the tables and chairs had been removed, making room for a number of chaise lounge chairs and couches, which lined the rooms. There were speakers hidden everywhere.

In the middle of each room was a long, high rectangular table, laden with all kinds of food. In the middle of the food in the dead centre of each table, like a trough, was a long rectangular hole. It was just deep enough to hold an absurd amount of ice, and it was studded with sparkling glasses of champagne, like yellow jewels buried in white sand.

There was also a ridiculous amount of people there. It was packed; hot bodies taking up every conceivable inch of space – lounging (or doing other unsavoury things) on the couches, getting inebriated and/or stuffing their faces by the tables, dancing or talking in the space between the two. There were too many people there for his liking, and he felt as if his personal space was being severely violated. As people brushed by him left, right and centre, he knew that the party was just picking up. In no time at all, he'd be drowned in the sweat and other bodily fluids of the people who would not stop rubbing against him as he moved from room to room.

What the hell had possessed him to come here? Someone swung a champagne glass and it accidentally caught him in the side of the head, right on his bruise. He barely restrained the urge to drop-kick the tipsy, apologising girl, while concentrating on the smarting behind his eyes. Hurrah for reminders, he thought caustically.

Standing in the foyer again, he tried to look beyond it to work out where Jou would be. There was a staircase that ran upwards along the sitting room wall that led to the second floor. He followed its ascent, eyes roving over the faces of those who littered the steps. The top of the staircase opened onto the second floor landing, in the middle of which a large square area was missing, directly over the foyer.

Kaiba looked at the open space above him, to see people leaning against the banisters that fenced the square area. Some of them were staring down, champagne glasses in hand, into the crowd of people below them, the crowd he was currently a part of. He thought that he might have seen a white-haired boy pass behind the people leaning on the banisters - Bakura, wasn't it? Well, that meant that Yugi and his entourage were certainly here.

He swung his gaze to ground level again. Next to the flight of steps, the foyer gave way to a large hallway that led to the latter rooms of the ground floor. He slinked through the crowd to find out what decadent behaviour was going on and if he could spot Jou in its midst. He might as well find the mutt and get whatever it was he had planned over with, so that he could go home as soon as possible.

He made his way stoically through the people, having to fend off surprisingly few advances. He figured that they were either so drunk that they had moved past the 'reckless affection' stage of intoxication, or weren't that drunk at all and kept their distance because they recognised him. Champagne was, comparatively speaking, light stuff. Either way, the music kept getting louder and louder as he inched through the hallway, booming in his chest and hammering in his head. The walls of the hallway were plastered in pictures and paintings, and he saw the frames vibrating in time with the music.

He soon found the source of the deafening sounds. He had long passed the stairway, and to his left - the room behind the living room - was the dining room, which had been transformed into a spectacular dance floor. It had been cleared of furniture like the other rooms, leaving a massively empty space behind that was now filled with writhing, jumping and undulating bodies. It was dark in there, and the only light came from the rapid flashing of the strobe lights that hung from the ceiling. The DJ's booth stood at the far end of the hall, and colossal speakers encircled the room. The driving beats drowned out all other thought or recourse but dance, which the surging mass undoubtedly had no complaints about.

Before he dove into the crowd, he looked at the opposite room across the hall. It had a small door, unlike the large double sliding door opening of the dining hall, and it was closed. He immediately knew what it was when a woman barrelled out of the swinging door, a plate of some unrecognisable food in hand. As much as he was sure the mutt liked food, Kaiba was equally sure that he wouldn't be in the kitchen. Well, mostly sure, at least.

He looked down toward the end of the hallway, where another large doorway opened up into the terraced back yard, where there was, obviously, an obnoxiously large pool. There were quite a few people lounging around its tiled edges, no doubt escaping the loud music and crushing mob. If he squinted, he could make out Yugi's spiky head, and what looked like a girl standing next to him. No doubt that Mazaki girl; she never left the midget's side if she could help it. Kaiba found her obvious puppy-love quite sickening. He grimaced inwardly, turning again to the dining hall/ dance floor.

He considered the disorderly pile of coats and shoes at the room's entrance, wrinkling his nose in disdain. It was definitely hot – which he hated - and getting hotter; and he was beginning to regret not leaving his trench coat in the car. But there was no way he'd leave his coat (or his shoes) in an unattended heap at a drunken orgy. He'd just have to bear the heat. That bastard had better be in there, he swore. He took a deep breath, and marched into the sea of dancing people.

Here was where all the bubbles were coming from. There was a big bubble-machine suspended from the ceiling amid streamers and balloons, pumping out hundreds of round bubbles which drifted down onto the heads of the dancers, or out of the door. He had a hard time making the rounds of the room. Every few feet, someone's arm shot out and grabbed him, trying to get him to dance with them. He had shoved away at least a dozen sweaty bodies when he saw Honda in front of him from behind a couple of people. He was moving energetically, his beak-shaped hair cutting through the air rhythmically. But there was no Jou in sight. Where the hell was he?

Kaiba covered the rest of the room methodically, and then made his way out, thoroughly pissed. Not only had he wasted at least fifteen minutes, but now he was going to have to search the second floor, too. He was beginning to think that his search for the mutt was more trouble than it was worth, when he spotted him through a number of people as soon as he stepped out of the dining room.

The blond was leaning next to the open kitchen door, chatting up a young girl who stood in the doorway, holding a bucket of ice. Kaiba, quite involuntarily, quickly took in what Jou was wearing. Tight, very low-waisted blue jeans. A casually dressy white button down shirt, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, half unbuttoned. Barefoot, like most of the other people milling about. He had his messy hair brushed back from his face and pulled tightly into the tiniest of ponytails. Jou smiled again at the girl, dazzlingly, and she relented, giving him the bucket of ice. He winked at her as he took the ice, rubbing a chunk of it on his cut lip. She rolled her eyes good-naturedly, and vanished into the kitchen again.

As soon as she was gone, Jou popped the piece of ice into his mouth and reached for another. He tucked the bucket under one arm as he rubbed the ice over his neck and chest with the other. Kaiba tried hard to pry his eyes away from Jou's closed eyes and the wet trail his hand was leaving all over his exposed skin, but was finding it particularly difficult. At that moment, however, the kitchen door swung open again, and a man passed, balancing a tray of champagne glasses above his head. He momentarily blocked Jou from view as he struggled to make it to the front rooms, and Kaiba remembered his mission. Operation Humiliation. Let the embarrassment commence.

He almost made it to the be-trayed man, when the latter finally escaped the human quicksand around him and was swept forward with a swirling current of people. Then Kaiba stopped abruptly. He had almost walked smack into Jou, who had shoved off from the wall while out of sight.

The sea of people roiled around them as they stood still in the middle of the hallway. They eyed each other calmly for a moment, and then Jou spoke – or near-shouted.

"You look hot," he told Kaiba, leaning close.

Maybe he leaned in so close so that he could be heard over the pulsating music, but something in Jou's eyes made Kaiba think that Jou was about two seconds away from grabbing him and attempting to have his way with him. Kaiba was disappointed with Jou's tactics, though. He had come expecting a challenge; last desperate (and hopefully amusing) efforts to secure his love and affection. If Jou thought that a drunken seduction (although clearly neither of them was drunk) would do the trick, then Kaiba had come all this way for nothing. It would be hardly fun at all to turn down Jou's advances, though he'd still do so with relish. Definitely.

Kaiba rolled his eyes in a condescending manner toward Jou, sure to add a hint of impatience to his expression.

"I said you look hot," Jou repeated. He licked his lips and eyed Kaiba. "Ice?"

Jou shoved the bucket into Kaiba's chest, a politely enquiring look on his face.

Kaiba almost smiled. "No thank you. What are you, the help?"

Jou lowered the bucket and blinked his eyes coquettishly. "Far from," he intoned.

Kaiba was about to inform Jou that being the help would definitely be a step up from being the no class punk he already was, but he was interrupted by raucous shouting.

"Make way for your king! Disperse, peons! I said move! That's right!"

True enough, the crowd parted and Otogi strutted down the human corridor, looking every bit the royalty he was proclaiming himself to be, wearing his usual red vest, this time with no undershirt, and black leather pants. He suddenly stopped, mere feet away from Kaiba and Jou, looking puzzled.

"But the king has forgotten where he was going! Quick! Someone give me some champagne!"

"How about some ice?" Jou shouted to him through the cheering people.

Otogi spun around frantically, looking for the phantom voice. Finally picking Jou out, his face lit up like a fireworks display. He shoved through the couple of people separating them and looked Jou in the eye, leaning as close to him as Jou had been leaning to Kaiba just minutes ago.

"And here's the king's princess," he said mischievously, sliding a hand around Jou's neck.

"And here's that ice," Jou returned, pulling Otogi's hand from his neck with one hand, and giving him the bucket with the other. Otogi promptly shoved the bucket blindly at someone behind him, and returned his hand to Jou's neck.

Kaiba watched the exchange, annoyed and irritated. As if he sensed Kaiba's mood, Otogi whipped his head around to look at him.

"Kaiba?" he asked incredulously, having not noticed him before. "Wow, I'm surprised you came. I thought for sure…What made you come?"

Kaiba looked right at Jou. "I'm waiting for an epiphany." Jou smirked, an expression on his face that clearly said 'I know you couldn't stay away.'

Otogi didn't notice the look shared between Jou and Kaiba. "Epiphany?" he asked puzzled. Then, smiling widely, he pronounced, "Well, Kaiba, you're out of luck. We don't have that brand of champagne here." He winked egregiously at Jou, who rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for by the end of the night," Jou told Kaiba, his voice meaningful.

That Otogi **did** notice, and he looked at the two of them in confusion, as if seeing them for the first time.

"Whoa," he said, randomly pointing his finger at the two of them. "What are you two doing? You'd better not be planning to fight or anything, or I'll throw you both out! You fuck up my party, and I'll fuck up your faces!" He paused. "Even more!"

Ah, Kaiba thought. The aggressive stage of intoxication. He was debating whether or not to tell Otogi just what the hell he could do with his stupid party, but Jou was already pacifying him.

"No one's fighting tonight," he said vehemently.

"King Otogi," the dice-earringed boy amended.

"My ass," Jou rolled his eyes again.

Otogi moved in very close to Jou again, purring in his ear. Kaiba could barely hear him, but he made out the words, staring at Otogi's lips as they pressed against Jou's ear. "That's an excellent idea. Come on, help me make the rounds."

Jou looked over Otogi's shoulder at Kaiba, with positively smouldering eyes. Kaiba saw Otogi's hand slip into Jou's open shirt, and he idly wondered if Otogi knew that Jou was in love with him. He wasn't angry whatsoever. He certainly didn't want to pull them violently apart either. Not at all. He raised his eyebrows and stared back at Jou, waiting for his next move.

He watched Jou part his lips and flick his tongue at them slightly. He watched Jou lick his canine, a move that he'd become familiar with, and that stirred his pulse. Otogi's hand was still moving around on Jou's chest. He bent in close to Otogi's ear, never taking his eyes off of Kaiba.

"Yeah. Let's make the rounds."

"There's a good princess," Otogi said, almost too soft for Kaiba to hear. His other hand snaked around Jou's body, cupping his ass and pulling them together briefly. Kaiba still met Jou's passionate gaze, but he had a slight frown on his face. What the hell was Jou doing? He didn't understand the blond at all. Why was he still looking at him like that, when he was very clearly going off to have a drunken and deeply disturbing personal encounter with dice-boy?

Otogi separated himself from Jou and turned to Kaiba. Ever the gracious host, he informed the millionaire that he had hosting duties he just could not escape. "You know, places to see, things to go, people to do." He stared lasciviously at Jou as he said the last part. Kaiba was sure he was nauseous. His stomach turned at the thought of Jou going off with that pretentious asshole. He knew he shouldn't have come.

"Do what you want," he snarled nastily as he made to brush past Jou toward freedom, but a hand clamped on his arm as he passed. Fingers squeezed the bruises under his sleeve, and he turned to look Jou in the eye.

"Don't leave," he said, almost urgently. His eyes bored into Kaiba's, pleading and sultry and so intense that Kaiba's insides fluttered in a completely different – and not altogether unpleasant - way. Jou's hands lightened their grip and his fingertips ghosted their way down Kaiba's arm to caress his fingers gently.

Kaiba should have pulled his hand away; his brain screamed it. But he didn't, and Jou continued. "Give it a chance. You might still find that epiphany." He pulled his hand away, and Otogi echoed him.

"Yeah," he said, sloshing his champagne (which had mysteriously appeared in his hand from out of nowhere) all over. "Don't go yet. Night's still young, you're still sober – you can't leave yet! Anyways, see you." He made a funny motion with his hand, as if he were doffing his royal hat to Kaiba, then grabbed a hold of Jou's hand and pulled him through the crowd. Jou trailed Otogi, still staring at Kaiba, with veritable come-hither eyes. Almost commanding him to follow.

Then it hit him, like a speeding sports car in the midnight hours. Jou **wanted** him to follow. He **wanted** Kaiba to watch. It almost looked like he had some kind of freaky fetish, but Kaiba had already figured him out. Jou wanted to make him jealous, so that he'd declare his undying love in a fit of rage and passion. He remembered Jou saying to him that he'd regret telling him to find someone else, that Kaiba couldn't stand to see him with anyone else.

Of course he could stand it. He was standing it just fine. He watched as the crowd swallowed them up, and he decided to leave, as quickly as possible. He shoved his way through the thronging mass, eager to get in his car and race the streets to his own house. But, just as he entered the foyer, he was greeted with a sickening sight.

Otogi had Jou's body pressed up against the staircase, and he drained his champagne glass. He pulled Jou's head toward his, catching his lips in a fervent, bubbly, wet, alcoholic kiss. Jou focused his eyes on Kaiba yet again as Otogi pulled away, as if he knew he couldn't be far behind. And then Jou leaned in close, slowly, and licked the champagne from Otogi's lips, his tongue darting in and out of his mouth. Then they were off again, weaving their way up the stairs.

Kaiba stared after them, instantly deciding to follow.

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_Yeah baby! You know you like it! Review me!_


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Kaiba suddenly had an insatiable need to see them, to see Jou. He abandoned all attempt at logical and rational thought, letting all the feelings he'd been trying desperately to get rid of take over him. He followed them up the stairs, trailing a good distance behind them. Jou looked back every few moments to see that he was still there. Kaiba barely looked elsewhere, noting only absently that the second floor was mostly guest bedrooms and bathrooms, tubs filled with ice and champagne bottles, groups of friends lounging in the bedrooms, streamers still hanging everywhere, balloons on the floor.

Otogi steered Jou toward another staircase at the end far end of the second floor. It was blocked by a red velvet rope, a signal that it was off bounds. Otogi graciously unhooked the rope and bowed, letting Jou pass up the stairs before him. Kaiba was sure that these stairs led to the master bedroom, and his stomach turned again. After they had disappeared up the stairs, he followed, hopping the rope.

He raced lightly up the ever-darkening staircase, and immediately stopped on the last stair. He was in an unlit corridor, and he had to strain to make out anything. But he saw them, together, just feet away. Otogi had Jou pressed against the wall again, and they were kissing furiously. His hands worked at Jou's shirt feverishly, and Jou's hands were inside Otogi's vest. Otogi broke away, kissing Jou's cheeks, his jaw, and then dipped his head into the crook of his neck. Jou turned his head so that Otogi had more room to work with, and his eyes landed on Kaiba. Jou smiled at him, and turned back to Otogi, pulling his head up to meet his in another crushing kiss.

Kaiba's fists clenched and unclenched as he watched. He tried to form coherent thoughts, but his emotions were spiralling out of control and anything remotely concrete darted out of reach as soon as he tried to make sense of it. All he felt was hot acid bubbling in his very insides, and a mechanical urge to follow them as they made their way to Otogi's bedroom. He needed to see, needed to know that Jou knew he was watching. He couldn't leave. He pursued them silently, although he knew he was safe in the shadows. Otogi wouldn't notice a jackhammer going off right now, alcohol and lust creating an impenetrable shield around him.

Otogi had Jou up against a door on the right side of the corridor, and he was pulling the blond's leg up over his hip. Again Jou turned his head to give Otogi access to his neck, and again he gazed at Kaiba lustfully. Kaiba saw Jou pushing his body into the other boy's, forcing the dark head closer to his neck. Then Otogi pulled them both away from the door just enough for him to open it from behind Jou, and he backed them into the room with all the grace of a speeding toddler.

Kaiba approached the sprawling door, unwilling to look in, but knowing there was no way he couldn't. The light spilling out of the room was very dim, but bright enough. He breathed deeply, and peered around the doorframe. Standing directly in front of, but a few feet away from the open door, the couple carried on devouring each others' faces. Jou stood so that he faced the corridor, and Otogi's back was to Kaiba. It was a large room, and the large bed, also directly in front of the door, was several paces behind them. He could hardly make out any more, not that he wanted to. Otogi muttered something to Jou, and the blond nodded languidly, still gazing in Kaiba's direction.

It was only then Kaiba noticed that the music pervaded this floor too, and he couldn't hear them. Instead of the absolute cacophony it had been downstairs, here it was a dull but ubiquitous thudding that drowned everything else out. He felt it, rather than heard it. The floor, the walls, the very air vibrated, pressing down on him. He heard the ring of bass in his ears, felt it in the beat of his heart, and this deep rumbling masked every sound his body made, and every sound they made.

He watched the events unfold before him as if in a dream. He watched them kiss and touch each other. He watched Jou pull Otogi's headband over his eyes to make sure that he wouldn't see anything. He moved closer now, to stand in the doorway, as if being pulled against his will. He watched them make their way to the bed, discarding clothing along the way. He watched the inevitable rhythm start and build. Jou's eyes hardly left his own. And he was riveted.

Kaiba swallowed thickly, and suddenly realised that the scene in front of him was affecting him in a completely unexpected way. As revolting and infuriating he found the spectacle to be, it still excited him. However sick that sounded to him, proof of his arousal was painfully throbbing against his suddenly tight pants, and Kaiba wondered if Jou knew. Did he know that this sight turned him on? What would he do if he did? Would he stop? Would he continue?

And then it was over and Kaiba knew he should start moving away now. He felt like a taught string, humming with tension and begging to be strummed. He blinked the daze from his eyes and finally started out of the room when Otogi gingerly rolled off of Jou.

He moved down the corridor numbly, futilely trying to decide on a course of action. Should he stay? Should he wait for Jou? Should he go home and forget this ever happened? Could he forget, could he erase those images from his mind? Of course not. Why did they affect him like this? What made him stay in the first place? What made him follow them at all?

He decided that he could save himself a lot of trouble if he just chose to admit something that he really didn't want to, that he'd been trying to deny for days; maybe even longer. That he did want the mutt. He was usually the very picture of self-control, functioning coolly no mater what came his way. And then Jou had kissed him, sending him into a state of mental and emotional chaos. He did want him. His inability to think straight for the past few days proved it. His sudden indecision and confusion proved it. His erratic emotions had proved it.

And tonight – tonight had proved it in a way that he couldn't ignore. Jou was right. And Kaiba was never one to lie to himself. Not for long, at least. He didn't want anyone else to be with Jou. Who knew that the mutt could be so sadistic, he mused. He'd enjoyed making Kaiba watch him, making him suffer on a purely emotional level. He almost shook his head. After all, why resort to physical violence when psychological damage is so much more effective?

But now what? Wanting Jou was one thing. Doing something about it was another thing entirely. Did he want to do something about it? Was it something he could learn to ignore in time? He didn't think so. But giving into Jou would mean admitting defeat, losing. That would mean swallowing his pride, like Jou said. He could never forget what Gozaburo had drilled into him ages ago: Pain is temporary, pride is forever. All he had left was his pride; could he sacrifice that for Jou? He wasn't sure, but what exactly would he be losing to anyway? Could it really be that bad?

They barely knew each other, and had hated each other for the most of their acquaintance. Superficially, at least. What made them think that something like this could work? They were largely - no, **thoroughly** -incompatible, and the thought of them together actually made him laugh. But he saw something in Jou; had always seen it. The same inner strength and determination he himself had, the same stubbornness and arrogance that drew them inexorably together. Even their differences appealed to him - Jou's openness and friendliness countered his coldness; and could warm him, if he'd let it.

And although he knew absolutely nothing about Jou, he couldn't ignore these new feelings; he was filled to the brim with them – desire, yearning, need, a willingness to try. And, gods help him, if he squinted, maybe even a little hope. What if they did make something of it? He really didn't want to feel this way at all, and given the choice, he would probably never have consciously fallen in like – or whatever - with Jou at all. But as it was, he'd had no choice in the matter whatsoever; it had crept up on him, and now he'd have to deal with it, sooner or later. Because, like it or not, he wasn't imagining things, and his subconscious wasn't playing tricks on him. He really did like the mutt.

But what about Mokuba? Oh, who was he kidding. Mokuba would think that mailman would make a good boyfriend if he expressed an interest.

He didn't realise that he'd stopped walking in the middle of the corridor. He only started out of his reverie when Jou shouted his departure to Otogi as he left the bedroom. He turned to look at Jou, and the blond froze at the sight of Kaiba. He shoved his hands as deeply into his pockets – did he ever take them out? - as possible and slowly walked to meet him. Kaiba gathered his thoughts. He'd have to deal with this now.

"I thought you'd be gone," Jou said awkwardly as he stopped near Kaiba, refusing to meet the other's eyes.

"Why?" Kaiba kept his voice blank and emotionless.

"You looked like you were ready to murder someone." Jou looked at him half afraid, half expectantly, as if he were expecting Kaiba to attack him.

"I must admit, I felt like that a little," he begrudgingly confessed.

"Really?" Jou questioned. He didn't say anything else, but was evidently bursting to ask why.

Kaiba didn't respond. He looked at Jou closely in the dark hallway, hair loose and wet, shirt and jeans donned. He looked neat enough, despite the buttons missing at his navel. He smelled like soap and had obviously just showered.

"Where's Otogi?" he asked.

"Shower. He'll be down in a minute. We should get going."

"Why? Is he a jealous boyfriend?" Kaiba deadpanned.

"He's not my boyfriend," Jou said quickly.

"Then what is he? You two looked pretty close. Put on quite a show." Kaiba was sure his voice was dripping with cynicism.

Jou blushed. "He's…we're just friends. I mean, sometimes we…but it's nothing." Jou was suddenly fidgety, pulling his hands out of his pockets to nervously rake them through his wet hair. Then he barrelled on.

"I mean, I didn't really want to, but I guess I thought if you saw me with someone else, you'd - you'd realise…I know I would…" Jou trailed off, mouth working uselessly to finish his sentence. Giving up on that, he laced his hands together behind his neck and hung his head, sighing and shaking his head slightly.

"You don't seem to be too confident in your plan now, mutt," Kaiba said to Jou. "I have to admit, it was original, but you really have to know who you're playing with if you expect stunts like that to pay off."

"Maybe it was a little crazy. At least I tried. I was thinking about you." His voice was muffled, and he looked completely downtrodden. He didn't notice the softening of Kaiba's tone at all.

Kaiba took him in - his damp hair, his slumped shoulders and thin waist. Kaiba was humming all over again. In that moment, Jou was utterly irresistible. Kaiba made up his mind in an instant again. He stepped a little closer to Jou, close enough to touch. He was still amazingly reluctant, but if he didn't say anything now, he never would. He hated 'What ifs,' and had given every venture he'd ever undertaken in his short life every ounce of determination and resolve he'd had. He wasn't about to start asking himself 'What if' now. He didn't want to let this opportunity pass him by, it's memory coming back again and again to haunt the rest of his years. He took a deep breath.

"Then you'll be glad to know that it worked. You win," he managed to get out around the lump in his throat.

Jou's head snapped up when he heard that, instantly searching Kaiba's normally unreadable eyes. He let go of his neck and let his arms hang limply at his sides, simply looking up into Kaiba's face.

"What do you mean, Kaiba?" Jou asked uncertainly. "Are – are you –"

Jou was cut off when Kaiba dove into him, crushing their lips together. Kaiba was never one to combine his innermost emotions and words well (unless those feelings were hatred or anger), and he'd always let his actions speak for him. Now, he poured everything he was feeling into that single kiss, and it was glorious. Their tongues met and spoke of promise and endeavour, of mutual desire and need. And when they pulled apart moments later, there was no need for words, they had already said it all.

"Wow," Jou breathed, his lips still inches from Kaiba's. He smiled at Kaiba, bright and shy and ecstatic all at once.

Kaiba gave Jou his own version of that smile, genuine happiness tilting his lips upwards. As it turned out, admission hadn't been that hard. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Come on, I'll give you a ride home," he told Jou. The turned to walk down the corridor, standing very close, arms brushing against one another.

"No, stay a little. It's still early - kinda. We can hang out in a bedroom," Jou implored. "To talk," he added quickly, realising the implications of his words. He ducked his head and shrugged lightly. "Or whatever."

Kaiba considered it, and despite the unwavering certainty of encountering a generous amount of spilt alcohol and a probable abundance of various different bodily fluids, decided that that maybe he could brave the sheer filth given his present company.

"Alright," he agreed. They walked side by side down the stairs, bumping into each other lightly.

"Kaiba - what now? I mean, what do we do? What'll we tell the others?" Jou asked tentatively. Kaiba thought he heard worry in his voice. Jou was wondering if he'd want to keep it a secret. Whatever 'it' was. He was sure that he didn't, but didn't want to have that discussion right this second. They had a lot of other things to work out first, like just what the hell they were doing, why they were doing it, and if anything could ever come of it.

"I think we can work something out," he told Jou, flashing him briefly what he hoped was a reassuring smile. It seemed to work, and the blond nodded, looking relieved.

"And you can call me Seto," Kaiba added quietly. They hopped the red velvet rope at the bottom of the stairs.

"Seto." Jou seemed to be turning the word over in his mind, tasting it on his lips. He smiled. "Yeah. I think I can manage that."

Kaiba nodded awkwardly. Telling Jou that was almost harder than admitting he really did like him. Only Mokuba called him Seto, and he hoped he hadn't made a mistake in giving Jou the privilege. They moved toward an empty guest bedroom, having long been vacated because all the champagne was finished. Jou let him walk in first, and he immediately started shrugging off his coat. Gods, it was hot.

"You know," Jou was saying with an embarrassed smile as he closed the door, "since I can call you Seto and all; I guess it's okay if you know I don't really mind when you call me puppy."

The door clicked shut, cutting off Kaiba's warm laugh.

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_I got an uncensored version of this chapter - if anyone wants it, holla! Either way, review me -you know you want to!_


	7. Epilogue

He was bouncing. Why was he bouncing? He stretched, screwing his eyes shut tightly. He felt the hot sun on his face and knew he got up late again. But he'd had a late night, so he forgave himself. He'd been doing a lot of that lately.

Something grabbed his hand and pulled, and he had to open his eyes. It was Mokuba, jumping up and down on his bed in his pyjamas, still holding his hand captive.

"Finally!" he exclaimed, exasperated. He flopped down next to Kaiba. "Jeez, what took you so long to wake up?"

"Mokuba, what time is it?" His voice was hoarse and his throat dry.

"Umm…nine something."

He groaned, and reached for the pitcher of water and glass on the bedside table. He poured himself a glass, and drank it thirstily.

"So! How was the party?" Mokuba asked enthusiastically.

"How do you know I went?" Kaiba enquired grudgingly.

"Please," said Mokuba. "I'm not five years old. You smell like alcohol and –" Mokuba sniffed confusedly "– like soap."

Soap? Oh, the bubbles. He looked down, realising he was still wearing the same clothes from last night. He was really tired when he came home and had crawled straight into bed.

"Well?" Mokuba was really impatient this morning.

"It was fine," he said. Which was true. He'd leave it at that and omit the part about Jou for the time being, he'd deal with that later. Omitting wasn't lying, exactly.

"Anything happen I should know about?" Mokuba innocently asked.

"Like what?" Kaiba asked warily. Did his brother have some kind of sixth sense?

"You know what I mean," Mokuba said knowingly. Kaiba frowned slightly.

"You mean the friend thing? That's…that's going fine." He hated leaving Mokuba out of the loop like this.

"I'm sure. Someone was pretty friendly with **you** last night," Mokuba said, rolling his eyes.

"What? What are you talking about?" Now he was baffled, wondering how Mokuba knew all these things he wasn't supposed to.

Mokuba was laughing at Kaiba's face now, kicking his legs up in the air. "Your – your neck," he managed to gasp out.

"My ne-" Kaiba stopped and vaulted out of bed, dashing to the mirror in the bathroom. He flicked on the lights, and there, on his neck, was a lovely purple hickey, to match his lovely purple temple and the lovely purple marks on his arms. A matching set. Ownership complete. He sighed heavily and slowly made his way back to his bed, wondering what to tell Mokuba. The truth was necessary now.

"Well, who is it?" Mokuba asked eagerly.

Kaiba sat down on the edge of the bed, and regarded Mokuba seriously. When the words "Katsuya Jounouchi" tumbled from his lips, Mokuba looked blankly at his brother for what had to be a full minute. Then he burst into laughter.

"Very funny; who is it for real?"

When he saw Kaiba's very stern (and now slightly annoyed) face, he stopped laughing immediately.

"Are you serious? Are – are you **serious**?" His jaw was slack, and his eyes wide.

Kaiba rubbed his hands over his face and through his hair. "I'm afraid so. As much as it pains me to admit it."

"So you - and Jou - are…" Mokuba gesticulated jerkily in the air.

Kaiba nodded matter-of-factly, waiting for Mokuba's outraged protests in the ensuing lengthy silence. He was instead greeted with the sound of hysterical laughter. He looked on, stunned, as Mokuba's raucous guffaws dislodged him from the edge of the bed and sent him tumbling to the floor. He lay at Kaiba's feet, rolling around in laughter, and Kaiba had the distinct impression that he was being made fun of.

"Oh – oh jeez, that's good!" Mokuba ground out hoarsely. "No! Really!" he continued, seeing Kaiba's irritated face. "You guys are – are per- per- **perfect** for each other!" he said honestly, trying as best he could to keep the giggles from his voice. A fresh round of cackles then erupted from Mokuba, and Kaiba had had enough. He picked Mokuba up and threw him out of the room.

He sighed, and made his way to the bathroom. Is that the way Jou's friends would react when he told them? Could Jou stand the embarrassing laughter and shocked stares? He snickered softly. He knew they sounded laughable. But he also knew somehow that they could be something together.

Last night (this morning), somewhere between the tentative conversation, nervous smiles and exploratory kisses, they had reached a common ground – each other. No matter how self-conscious they got, or how awkward things became, Kaiba never stopped feeling that he had made the right choice, that they belonged together. They'd make it work somehow. They'd overcome whatever got in their way together. They'd both risked a lot for each other, and Kaiba was going to make sure they hadn't done so in vain.

"No what ifs," he muttered to himself as he shrugged off last night's clothes, ready for a good shower. "No what ifs."

* * *

_And there you have it - the end of **Admission**. I always wanted to use "Epilogue". Tis a dream come true. Anyways, thank you to everyone for reading and reviewing! Yalls make my days!! Now review me once more, for old time's sake! You know you want to!!_


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